Emotions guiding voters in elections

Why do people vote against their best interests? This age-old question is relevant for many Michael Baumgartner voters.

My father many years ago opined that people so dreamt of joining the rich that they closely related to them and voted with them.

But economic mobility has greatly diminished, including by the billionaire-friendly “One Big Beautiful Bill” championed by Baumgartner, so those dreams should be rudely awakened by reality. Hard work now may not ensure economic security.

Vowing to make Democrat Barack Obama a one-term president, long-time Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell opposed everything Obama, and then Democratic ex-President Joe Biden, proposed to help the working class. Consequently, the working class justifiably has felt forgotten.

Many emotionally relate to President Donald Trump’s angry rhetoric, even though he’s never done anything for their welfare — in fact, along with congressional Republicans like Baumgartner, has made life harder for them. Unfortunately, many people vote their emotions, rather than rationally in agreement with their best interests.

However, for many voting for the shrewdly deceitful Baumgartner, the answer may be much simpler – they haven’t monitored Baumgartner closely enough to discern the big difference between what he says and what he does (how he votes).

Norm Luther

Spokane